Welcome to Sportstar's coverage of the Pro Kabaddi League. This is
Lavanya Lakshminarayanan and I will be taking you through today's PKL 8 match between Tamil Thalaivas vs Haryana Steeers.
Before you leave us,
The 2022 Sportstar Aces Awards are coming up and your favourite athletes and teams need your help to take home the top honours. From Neeraj Chopra and Mirabai Chanu to the Indian hockey team and Chennai Super Kings - star performers from 2021 are nominated over five popular choice categories and need your vote.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE YOUR CHOICE COUNT.
While I want to wax lyrical about the performance of the Thalaivas here, let me just drop the stats from this game to give you an idea about how one-sided this game really was. Anything Haryana did, Tamil Thalaivas did and twice as well. The wins sees Thalaivas go up a position to fourth while Haryana sits at seventh. Much to figure out for Rakesh Kumar and his boys and that scowl at the end of the game can only mean a tough talk in the dressing room for the men in grey.
AND THAT'S THE FULL TIME WHISTLE. 19 POINT VICTORY FOR THALAIVAS.
BEWARE, OTHER TEAMS IN THE PRO KABADDI LEAGUE.
26-45
Manjeet tries so hard to get his hand across the midline. He has a super 10 but will fall short by the barest of margins as the Steelers literally have to sit on him to refuse a point to the tall raider.
24-45
Anwar Baba, a new raider, is brought in for some game time and is left hopping in the middle of the mat. Point to the Steelers.
24-44
Vikash Kandola is stranded in the middle of the mat.
24-43
Ajinkya Pawar comes in for the do or die raid and is rounded off the mat. He has a smile on his face as he finds himself ushered out. He can afford to smile. This is a blood bath.
23-43
Sagar goes in early as he goes for the back hold. Mohit assists right after and brings down the Steelers raider. His seventh tackle point of the night.
Rakesh Kumar tells his boys to bring down the deficit. They have to salvage a point.
The second game of the night
is another exciting fixture which my colleague Nihit Sachdeva will take you through - the battle of the two firepower raiders
Arjun Deshwal and Naveen Kumar - the only two who have super 10s in every one of their games this season.
Follow that here:
23-42 Surjeet thumps down the Haryana raider. No chance and so close to the midline too. Nicely done by the Thalaivas. They are bossing this game like nobody's business.
23-41 Surrender raid from Mohit. ALL OUT. The fourth one Thalaivas have inflicted on the Steelers in this game
23-38
Surjeet goes in early to block Jaideep and get him off the mat. One man left for Haryana
23-37
Ajinkya Pawar seems to have taken out Surender Nada. Nada went for a dash that was obviously not going to be there. Nada has his hands on his head and is disappointed with himself. Steelers are reviewing this saying Pawar was out of bounds. Is this another one of their hasty reviews? Nada breaks the chain with Jaideep and goes for Pawar who touches the lobby only after the touch. Why was this review taken at all? My oh my. Haryana still loses Surender so what is the point?
REVIEW UNSUCCESSFUL and another chapter added to Haryana's book of bad reviews.
Looking far too one-sided.
23-36
Do or die raid and Rajesh Narwal who comes in is off after Surjeet gets a hold on his ankles and sees him blocked out.
Last 10 minutes.
23-25
Ajinkya Pawar comes in for a do or die raid but he will not succeed here as Jaideep thwarts Pawar's touch on the right corner and restrict him.
SUPER TACKLE FOR THE STEELERS.
21-35
For a second, that looked dicey. Sahil gets Meetu's waist while the others block him out. 13th tackle point of the night for the Thalaivas.
21-34
Manjeet takes out Ravi Kumar in the right corner with a runnng hand touch.
21-33
Sixth tackle point for Sagar as he gets a hold on both of Kandola's ankles. Well supported by the rest. Six successful tackles out of seven attempts.
21-32
Pawar takes out Ankit as an ankle hold goes in vain. Pawar anticipated that and is happy to reap the benefits.
21-31 Vikash Kandola flies to the midline despite a dash from Mohit. Gets the point. Haryana chipping away but a good 10 points away from the Thalaivas,
20-31
Ajinkya Pawar is brought down right by the midline. He thinks he's got a finger over the midline. Meanwhile, Jaideep Kuldeep has stepped over the midline. Referees give a point to each side. Thalaivas have now reviewed and claim Ajinkya is safe. Replays show Pawar has not touched that midline.
But REVIEW IS SUCCESSFUL! The defender had already crossed the centre line so Pawar is safe.
20-30
Manjeet is dashed down. You don't see this happen too much. Manjeet is on eight raid points and hunting for a super 10 but will have to wait for a while to get there
19-30 Sahil goes for the thighs. Sagar gets a hold on Vikash Kandola's shoulders and the Haryana captain is down.
19-29
Vikash Kandola comes in on a do or die raid and gets Mohit. Error. Mohit might as well hug Vikash Kandola. That's how close he was.
18-29
Manjeet is unstoppable and inflicts the third
ALL OUT on the Steelers as he gets both defenders off the mat.
11 POINT LEAD. MY WORD.
18-25
Manjeet pursues Nada in the corner and expectedly tempts him to go for him and he does. Manjeet though is well on his way to the midline and gets there safely. Only two players left on the mat here for the Steelers.
FOUR OF THE TOP DEFENDERS IN THE LEAGUE FEATURE IN THIS GAME. WOW.
So at
HALF TIME , we have a roller coaster ride of a first half which saw Thalaivas take a huge 10-point lead which Vikash Kandola and the Haryana defence brought down to three points in a matter of a few raids. Thalaivas inflicted two all outs and then were packed off themselves before stabilising to end the first half with a six point lead. Can they see this game through or will Steelers ram their way to a win? Or will this be another frustrating draw (Can you tell I am praying for no tie?)? We'll know in a few minutes as the second half comes up next.
18-24
Rohit Gulia picks up the bonus. Sagar lets go of the chain and gets a hold on Rohit and pulls him back. Lovely work. A point to each team
Ajinkya Pawar has been brought on now. He has two super 10s - both coming when he's come on as a substitute. What a talent!
17-23
Meetu is blocked out by Surjeet. Immovable object is Surjeet. HOW? I want to learn to be that stable in life.
17-22
Prapanjan gets two points. Too advanced a tackle and he reaps the benefits of the resistance
17-20
Meetu gets a toe touch on Sagar. WHAT A COMEBACK. That gulf down to three points
16-20
Manjeet tries the dubki but Surender sneaks in from the front while Meetu and Ankit also band together to contain the threat.
15-20
Surrender raid from Surjeet. How things change in this game. Fascinating! Haryana Steelers have done so well to make a comeback here.
12-20
Bhavani Rajput is brought down leaving Surjeet alone on the mat for Thalaivas
11-20 OOH WHAT DO WE HAVE HERE.
Feisty Vikash Kandola gets a touch and runs into the lobby.
10-20
Prapanjan shows his back to the Haryana chain and pays dearly as he's surrounded and pushed back. Three men left on the mat for Tamil Thalaivas
9-20
Vikash Kandola has taken out Sagar in the right cover and Mohit. In the last two raids, Haryana has made some important inroads into the Thalaivas formation.
7-20
Manjeet tries to get a double thigh hold on Vikash Kandola but his speed and agility helps him slip out. That was avoidable but will do Kandola's confidence some good. Thalaivas should also be wary of providing gaps for the Steelers to make a comeback.
6-20
Sagar comes good again as the tackle effects the second ALL OUT. Haryana Steelers are looking very poor today.
5-17
Manjeet is making this look like child's play. He's taken out Surender Nada as no one in the Haryana outfit is able to pull this man back from the midline.
5-16 Vikash Kandola should have tried to get a hand across the line but is firmly clutching Bhavani Rajput as he is pushed out. Turns out, Rajput was holding his jersey and given a green card.
5-14 Manjeet applies pressure and Meetu lets the chain go and oversteps off the mat. Lovely play here
5-13
Mohit and Prapanjan take down Rohit. This felt like a hunting move as they corner him into the mat and take him down.
5-12
Prapanjan gets a bonus and a gift as Ankit goes for a very futile anklehold. Unnecessary errors.
5-11
Vikash stretches and gets a touch on the left corner defender.
4-11
Jaideep makes a rare error as his dash on Manjeet goes in vain. Far too easy given his height and how close he is to the midline.
4-10
Prapanjan gets a touch on Rohit Gulia and reducing the raiding arsenal to two men for the Steelers. Meetu needs to fire today and assist Vikash.
4-9
Rohit Gulia gets a bonus point.
3-9
Jaideep didn't appreciate the lifting. He gets a hold of Bhavani Rajput's ankle and takes him down. Nicely done.
2-9
Jaideep Kuldeep is lifted off the mat. Literally. ALL OUT. Haryana starting on the backfoot here.
2-6
Manjeet has taken out the right corner. Too easy. Haryana staring at an all out
2-5
Do or die raid for Haryana and he amps up the pace but Sagar gets a hold of his thighs and takes him down
2-4
Manjeet gets a running hand touch on Mohit. Too easy for the Thalaivas raider.
Battle of the ace defenders here - Surender Nada vs Surjeet Singh - both have 22 tackle points coming into this game. Haryana has a slight upper hand with Jaideep Kuldeep having a stellar season so far.
2-3
Surjeet blocks Meetu with the rest of the blue jerseys circling him and finishing the tackle. Ooof.
2-2
Surender Nada goes for an ankle hold on Manjeet but the latter is too tall and strong to be bothered.
2-1
Dramatic start to proceedings as Rohit Gulia gets a bonus point and then finds himself dashed out by Surjeet. Both raider and defender are out but Haryana gets the bonus
Thalaivas have won the toss and Steelers will raid first.
-------------------------
Thalaivas defence has helped them stand out this season. Corner defender Sagar has the most High 5s in Season 8 (three) and that will be a big shot in the arm when you go against a side marshalled by Surender Nada. Will it be enough? We'll find out. Prapanjan and Bhavani Rajput are the support raiders today so no Ajinkya Pawar to start with, but we've seen the imperious raider shine in the second half and when the clock's ticking gets louder - so expecting to see him in the second half isn't a long shot. Straightforward starting 7 for Haryana. Their best players are on the mat.
This will be a fun contest. Live action coming up.
7:25 pm -
LINEUPS
Tamil Thalaivas:
Manjeet, Surjeet Singh, Mohit, Bhavani Rajput, K Prapanjan, Sagar, Sagar Krishna
Haryana Steelers:
Vikash Kandola, Rohit Gulia, Meetu, Ankit, Mohit, Surender Nada, Jaideep Kuldeep
- 7.20pm:
Oh we have something interesting for you to do before we sit down to watch kabaddi tonight.
The 2022 Sportstar Aces Awards are coming up and your favourite athletes and teams need your help to take home the top honours. From Neeraj Chopra and Mirabai Chanu to the Indian hockey team and Chennai Super Kings - star performers from 2021 are nominated over five popular choice categories and need your vote.
CLICK HERE TO MAKE YOUR CHOICE COUNT.
- 7.15pm:
A quick look at the
points table before we gear up for live action:
- 7pm:
Tamil Thalaivas find themselves in fifth place on the points table thanks to some refreshing performances at both ends. They've found themselves drawing four games (not exactly something they were happy about) along with two wins and a loss in seven games. Steelers should be an easy game for the Thalaivas given how exposed Haryana's frailties in crunch situations has been. Having said that, 9/10 times I've used the phrase 'easy game' has ended in upsets this season so, like you, I am going to wait and watch what happens tonight too. Thalaivas are on a five match winning streak and will hope that endures at the end of the night.
- 6:45pm: Tamil Thalaivas and Haryana Steelers is an interesting matchup given their fortunes in the league so far. Haryana has been hot and cold all through with a mixed bag of results to show for it. In seven games, the Steelers have three wins and three wins with one tie too. Consistency has not been a strong suit as a collective but the defence has shown signs of improvement. Meetu Mahender has been a trump card for this side and ably aided Vikash Kandola and Rohit Gulia in raiding duties. Haryana needs to be smart with their reviews and tone down how nervous they get when they find themselves in comfortable positions.
If you're still unclear about the rules, here is some help:
Comments
SHARE